VISIT FROM AN OLD FRIEND (and Richard Armitage, Matthew Macfadyen and Colin Firth)

A few months ago I wrote about a dear friend of mine, Sister Nora Brick, an 82 year old Franciscan nun who is regarded as pretty much a living saint in my area of Florida. On Valentine's day of this year she was beaten senseless by one of the men she had been helping for so many years. He's a crackhead. He burst into her trailer, grabbed her around her head and must pulverized her face. She's 82 years old and a native of Ireland. She's about five foot two inches. He is well over six feet.

Well her Provincial mother house in New Jersey decided Nora needed to retire already. She lived in a run down old trailer in the middle of one of the worst streets in our city, she is alone, she is forgetting things. It's time.

As you can see from these pictures she is doing very well, recovering from the attack, gaining weight (don't tell her I said that) Sister Carla and Sister Dona are her 'bosses' in the Franciscan Order. They are two of the gentlest, sweetest people I have ever met. Not the picture of nuns that Hollywood has provided us, but much more truthful.

There was a big farewell for her held at a nearby church. Hundreds of people attended, the media was there. Oh, that was a treat. Richie and I ended up on the news, crossing behind as a cameraman filmed some woman's teary eyed blathering. We blocked out the sun. We looked like two floats from the Macy parade. Children screamed in terror. But I digress...to continue...


We watched the singer at the restaurant last night, then the sun set. Sister will be going to her retirement now. But first she's flying home for her annual visit to Ireland - to see her own two real life sisters. They are very strict with her indeed whenever she visits. She's their baby sister you see.

Some things never change.


THE BOYS OF SUMMER
Absolutely no reason for these pictures aside from the fact they are all beautiful.



As you can all see, I show no favoritism.